Talk Morgan Forums Community The Malvern Arms The Planet of BoE

I also don't get it Peter. We paid 500k for our 5 bed house near Felixstowein 2018. 12 months later the one next door which is identical but a far saller garden went for 565k. Now it is worth c 700 to 750k. This despite roughly 4,000 new houses being built in the immediate area.

The cheapest ones they build are generally 3 bed terraces at 250k plus. Suffolk folk don't have huge salaries.

I'm not sure the 'housing shortage' that we are continually being fed is as real as some would have.
When we got married in 1968 our new house was £4,250 being a 10% deposit (I think) and a mortgage 3 times my salary. That was all that was allowed.
A few years later the government removed that constraint, so many people took out mortgages far greater than 3 times their salary. That brought about gazumping and the consequent rapid inflation of house prices.

I don't think it was ever a 'legal constraint', more like a 'best practice' kind of thing. When I bought my first house in 1998, the guidance was still 3x salary, or 2.5x joint salary. When I bought my second house in 2008, we were again only allowed 2.5x joint salary, and only just managed to scrape a mortgage or £125,000. It was a 100% mortgage, so we got stung with a massive interest rate for the first 5 years (more than we're paying at the moment).

There was definitely a legal constraint, in 1966 when I bought my first new car the deposit was 33% this was later reduced by govt in stages over a number of years. In 1976 I bought my first house £13,750 detached 2 bed bungalow the max allowed mortgage was 90% and 2.5 x salary. This is probably what controlled inflation. Gradually people have been allowed to borrow more and more at one time 110% and 4 times single salary no wonder house prices soared. At the moment in Essex where there are massive new housing projects they are struggling to sell and reducing prices or offering to pay the first years mortgage. Rather than a housing shortage there are many new builds unsold and on the market for 6 months +. I predict a house price crash over the next two years.

Anyone got a reference to an Act or Law? I struggled to find one - everything I've found suggests it was mortgage industry practice, but doesn't mention any legal framework. Would be interesting to see.

TBM google Higher purchase restrictions 1960. There is plenty listed in Hansard.

Can't find anything definate. Not to worry, it just piqued my interest.

I am afraid you are as far out of touch as it is possible to be if you think the housing shortage is overstated.

I am a landlord. On the rare occasion that i advertise a property (most are let to friends/family of existing tenants) i will receive 50 requests for a viewing within 24 hours.
I have had people crying and begging for me to rent to them. I always give NHS workers first pick but otherwise i end up putting a handful of names into a hat.. Thats the lottery of housing.

And there in lies the next issue. It is estimated that at least a third of council houses sold under the 'right to buy' scheme introduced in 1980 are now in the hands of landlords. Property is seen as an investment, resulting in the massive increases in house prices. This leaves those unable to buy scrabbling around trying to find places to rent, often at much higher cost than an equivalent mortgage, giving no opportunity to save for a required deposit.

If it was up to me, I'd prevent anyone owning more than two homes, and force the sale of all their others. That would flood the housing market, massively devalue house prices and get us back in a situation where folks could buy a house at 2.5x salary (average UK salary is £36K), or have affordable rents.

Maybe where you are. Did you read post #772761 above?